Alvarez: Sabi po ni Mayor Duterte, for him to open the bank accounts, you should execute an affidavit attesting to all your claims, how you got them, and your sources, just so we can verify that they are true.

PDP-Laban confirmed March was addressed only to the Central Bank and not BPI, confirmed that it may not have been applicable to the BPI account.

Late Morning, April 29: Libel vs Perjury

At this point, it’s pretty clear that Trillanes violated the Bank Secrecy Law (RA 1045), especially since he admitted that he did not use a waiver to gather data, and that he publicly disseminated the data while not under parliamentary immunity.

Investigating further, however, it appears that there’s a reason behind it for both parties. But before I explain, let me clarify that it’s over if Trillanes accusations are true, i.e. that affidavit won’t matter.

Thus, for the sake of argument, let’s assume for the moment that his accusations are false.

With no sworn affidavit, the best that Duterte can do is sue Trillanes for libel. With an affidavit, Duterte can sue Trillanes for perjury.

Now the question is... what’s the difference?

Scenario A: If Duterte sues Trillanes for libel

In a prospective Duterte vs. Trillanes libel case, the first three elements are easily met. The fourth element, however, is a bit tricky. The law presumes malice is present in every defamatory imputation [AbogadoMo], however, this does not exactly apply if the plaintiff is a public official or public figure which, in this case, is Duterte.

For libel cases where plaintiffs are public officials, the law requires the prosecution to prove actual malice, or “[Trillanes] must have known that the speech was false, or he must have been recklessly indifferent to its truth or falsity [SC GR 128959]”.

But this may easily be denied by Trillanes because he regularly points to his “secret sources”. That is, Trillanes may say that the accusations are true to the best of his knowledge, even if they are, in fact, false.

Scenario B: If Duterte sues Trillanes for perjury

That the accused made a statement under oath or executed an affidavit upon a material matter.

That the statement or affidavit was made before a competent officer, authorized to receive and administer oath.

That the sworn statement or affidavit containing the falsity is required by law or made for a legal purpose.

That in that statement or affidavit, the accused made a willful and deliberate assertion of a falsehood.

The first three elements are a given, as we have assumed the execution of Trillanes affidavit, with the legal purpose being the verification of bank transactions. Now, we have earlier assumed, for the sake of argument, that Trillanes’ accusations are false, so that may automatically trigger the fourth element.

Basically, it’s a lot easier for Duterte to send Trillanes to prison if the charge is perjury.

But then again, this assumes that Trillanes’ accusations are false. What TP does not understand, however, is why Trillanes remains stubborn despite his claim that his accusations are verified and true.

Parang may hindi tama.

Early Afternoon, April 29: More Accusations

The Inquirer reports that Trillanes called for a press conference. Trillanes showed the media a brown envelope that purportedly contains details of bank accounts that belong to Duterte and his three children. The transactions, totaling P2.4 billion and involving 17 bank accounts in 3 banks, were recorded over a 9-year period, according to the Senator [ABSCBN].

"I don't know where Sen. Trillanes got his information, but the graphic posted by the [Philippine Daily] Inquirer showing alleged credits, that is not a BPI document," Limcaoco, who used to serve as the president of BPI Family Savings Bank, said in a mobile phone reply.

Final Note

At this point, I see it as a virtual tie. Other than that, there’s nothing we can do right now except to wait for Monday when the banks re-open. That’s it.

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ThinkingPinoy, its contents, and its associated social media accounts were created, published, and maintained solely by ThinkingPinoy (TP) in his personal capacity. TP is not officially affiliated with any political party. Unless otherwise specified, the opinions expressed in this website and its associated social media accounts are TP’s own and do not necessarily reflect the view of any particular political party.